SPARTANBURG, S.C. - UNCG earned its seventh Southern Conference men's soccer regular season championship and will enter the league's tournament as the top seeded team in 2011.
The event begins this weekend with first round matches played at the home fields of the top four seeds on both Saturday, November 5 and Sunday, November 6. The semifinals and championship will be played on November 11 and 13 at the Ted Mackorell Soccer Complex in Boone, N.C.
The Spartans (8-7-2, 5-1-1) won their last four SoCon matches and surrendered just one goal in seven league contests to win the title for the second straight season. The Spartans will entertain No. 8 seed Wofford (5-12-1, 1-6-0) Saturday at 7 p.m. in the first round.
Furman (13-2-4, 4-1-2), ranked 19th nationally according to the NSCAA/Continental Tire Top 25 Poll, placed second this season after falling to UNCG in Greensboro to open conference play. The Paladins host seventh-seeded College of Charleston (5-7-5, 1-3-3) Sunday at 6 p.m. in Greenville, S.C.
Georgia Southern (8-7-1, 4-3-0) earned the third seed behind the top scoring offense in the SoCon this season and will take on No. 6 seed Elon (6-10-2, 2-5-0) in round one. The match begins at 2 p.m. Sunday in Statesboro, Ga.
Davidson (8-7-3, 3-2-2) and Appalachian State (9-4-4, 3-2-2) tied for the fourth spot in the regular season standings and will face off in the quarterfinals. The Wildcats will host the rematch Sunday at 7 p.m. in Davidson, N.C., due to their 3-0 victory over the Mountaineers last week.
The tournament winner earns the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Men's Soccer Championships.
2011 Southern Conference Men's Soccer Championship
November 5 (Saturday)
First Round (at higher seed)
#8 Wofford at #1 UNCG 7 p.m.
November 6 (Sunday)
First Round (at higher seed)
#6 Elon at #3 Georgia Southern, 2 p.m.
#7 College of Charleston at #2 Furman, 6 p.m.
#5 Appalachian State at #4 Davidson, 7 p.m.
November 11 (Friday)
Semifinals at Boone, N.C.
UNCG-Wofford winner vs. Davidson-Appalachian State winner, 4 p.m.
Furman-College of Charleston winner vs. Georgia Southern-Elon winner, 6:30 p.m.
November 13 (Sunday)
Championship at Boone, N.C.
Championship Match (ESPN3), 1 p.m.
ALL TIMES EASTERN